Growth and structural discrimination of cortical neurons on randomly oriented and vertically aligned dense carbon nanotube networks

• Christoph Nick,
• Sandeep Yadav,
• Ravi Joshi,
• Christiane Thielemann and
• Jörg J. Schneider

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 1575–1579, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.169

• chemistry viewpoint in future work. In conclusion, pristine randomly and vertically aligned CNTs architectures were studied with respect their use as substrates for neuron cell growth. Both CNT architectures are unique hierarchical structures to direct and control neural cell growth. To the best of our

Ionic liquid-assisted formation of cellulose/calcium phosphate hybrid materials

• Ahmed Salama,
• Mike Neumann,
• Christina Günter and
• Andreas Taubert

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 1553–1568, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.167

• templates and thus results in materials mostly exhibiting surface or near-surface mineral layers. The most straightforward strategy towards real, nanostructured and hierarchical carbohydrate/calcium phosphate composites would therefore be a synthesis protocol using a solvent that is able to dissolve

Insect attachment on crystalline bioinspired wax surfaces formed by alkanes of varying chain lengths

• Elena Gorb,
• Sandro Böhm,
• Nadine Jacky,
• Louis-Philippe Maier,
• Kirstin Dening,
• Sasha Pechook,
• Boaz Pokroy and
• Stanislav Gorb

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 1031–1041, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.116

• corrections of the manuscript. This study was partly supported by the SPP 1420 of the German Science Foundation ‘Biomimetic Materials Research: Functionality by Hierarchical Structuring of Materials’ (project GO 995 ⁄ 9-2) to SG.

Functionalized nanostructures for enhanced photocatalytic performance under solar light

• Liejin Guo,
• Dengwei Jing,
• Maochang Liu,
• Yubin Chen,
• Shaohua Shen,
• Jinwen Shi and
• Kai Zhang

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 994–1004, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.113

• located in ABO3 structures, and functionalized multicomponent ABO3 materials can thus be prepared by partial substitution of cations in A and B sites [46][47][48]. In this approach, we have successfully synthesized hexagonal single-crystal nanosheet-based NaSbO3 and AgSbO3 hierarchical cuboidal

• nanosheet-based hierarchical structure could be achieved over NaSbO3 and AgSbO3 photocatalysts. Meanwhile, the single-crystal nature can reduce the crystal defects leading to more efficient charge separation. The larger surface area provides more active sites for photocatalytic reaction. The exposed {001

• } facets as the reactive surfaces can accelerate the redox reactions. Therefore, nanosheet-based AgSbO3 photocatalysts showed a 1.8 times higher initial O2 evolution rate than AgSbO3 photocatalysts without the hierarchical structure under visible-light irradiation. Besides facet control, microstructure

Fibrillar adhesion with no clusterisation: Functional significance of material gradient along adhesive setae of insects

• Stanislav N. Gorb and
• Alexander E. Filippov

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 837–845, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.95

• contact may be increased due to the presence of specific micro- and nanostructures [1][2][3][4][5]. Crack trapping mechanisms in adhesive systems with multiple contacts provide advantages in attachment on rough substrates [6]. Also hierarchical organization of insect pad structures enables formation of

Measuring air layer volumes retained by submerged floating-ferns Salvinia and biomimetic superhydrophobic surfaces

• Matthias J. Mayser,
• Holger F. Bohn,
• Meike Reker and
• Wilhelm Barthlott

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 812–821, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.93

• possess a multiscale roughness on several hierarchical levels resulting in a stable Cassie wetting state [17]. In the floating fern genus Salvinia four different shapes of such hairs (trichomes) have been described [33]. In the simplest case these are individual multicellular, uniseriate trichomes. In the

The optimal shape of elastomer mushroom-like fibers for high and robust adhesion

• Burak Aksak,
• Korhan Sahin and
• Metin Sitti

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 630–638, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.74

• that bears them [1]. Some insects, spiders, and anoles have fibers with effective diameters of the order of micrometers. Other animals such as the gecko lizard bear micro-scale stalks, which branch down to nano-scale fibers forming intricate hierarchical structures. The common aspect of fibrillar

The surface microstructure of cusps and leaflets in rabbit and mouse heart valves

• Xia Ye,
• Bharat Bhushan,
• Ming Zhou and
• Weining Lei

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 622–629, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.73

• smooth to the naked eye, they are actually comprised of a double hierarchical structure consisting of a cobblestone-like microstructure and nano-cilia along with mastoids with a directional arrangement. Such nanostructures could play a very important role in the hemocompatibility characteristics of heart

• decade due to advancements in nano- and biotechnologies. After millions of years of evolution and optimization, the surfaces of many organisms have formed a variety of special micro- and nanoscale hierarchical structures. These structures show many perfect characteristics such as superhydrophobicity, low

• the surface of the valve cusps and the bottom diameter of each “cobblestone” is approximately 5–9 μm. Figure 2b shows a high-resolution SEM image of the microstructure. In this image the hierarchical structure is formed of tenuous villi and “cobblestones”, and each villu has a diameter of 140–190 nm

Hairy suckers: the surface microstructure and its possible functional significance in the Octopus vulgaris sucker

• Francesca Tramacere,
• Esther Appel,
• Barbara Mazzolai and
• Stanislav N. Gorb

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 561–565, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.66

• this work is the presence of hairs on the acetabular protuberance. This is of particular interest because to the best of our knowledge, these microstructures are unknown in the literature. Moreover, the presence of such hierarchical hairs on the entire surface of the acetabular protuberance supports

• spatulate termini that are well known in the attachment pads of terrestrial animals [12][13]. In the case of the clingfish, it was hypothesised that the amazing tenacity observed for this fish could be related to the hierarchical structure of the hairs (“microvilli”) [3]. Moreover, the absence of spatulate

Magnesiothermic conversion of the silica-mineralizing golden algae Mallomonas caudata and Synura petersenii to elemental silicon with high geometric precision

• Janina Petrack,
• Steffen Jost,
• Jens Boenigk and
• Matthias Epple

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2014, 5, 554–560, doi:10.3762/bjnano.5.65

• and hierarchical forms [8][9][10][11][12]. These porous biominerals can serve as template for chemical conversion reactions, such as the calcium carbonate skeleton of sea urchins or the silica cases of diatoms [8][13]. In 2002, such a conversion reaction was first described in which biominerals were

Dynamic nanoindentation by instrumented nanoindentation and force microscopy: a comparative review

• Sidney R. Cohen and
• Estelle Kalfon-Cohen

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2013, 4, 815–833, doi:10.3762/bjnano.4.93

• require any knowledge of the contact area and it can be used to clearly identify phase transitions. At the micro-level, the thermodynamic state of the polymer can be related to a molecular motion at different hierarchical levels – from the cooperative motion of entire chains through short hops of

Controlled synthesis and tunable properties of ultrathin silica nanotubes through spontaneous polycondensation on polyamine fibrils

• Jian-Jun Yuan,
• Pei-Xin Zhu,
• Daisuke Noda and
• Ren-Hua Jin

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2013, 4, 793–804, doi:10.3762/bjnano.4.90

• precisely controlled nanopatterns, a hierarchical morphology and organic–inorganic hybrid structures [16][17][18]. It has been demonstrated that the long-chain polyamines (partially combined with proteins) in diatom shells and the silicateins in marine sponges play a vital role in templating the

Functionalization of vertically aligned carbon nanotubes

• Eloise Van Hooijdonk,
• Carla Bittencourt,
• Rony Snyders and
• Jean-François Colomer

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2013, 4, 129–152, doi:10.3762/bjnano.4.14

Controlled positioning of nanoparticles on a micrometer scale

• Fabian Enderle,
• Oliver Dubbers,
• Alfred Plettl and
• Paul Ziemann

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2012, 3, 773–777, doi:10.3762/bjnano.3.86

• least, with respect to interparticle distances, or even both. Restricting these distances to the nanoscale as well, some self-organization approaches exist that exploit hierarchical structure formation, allowing at least partial fulfillment of the above requirements [19][20][21][22]. For interparticle

The oriented and patterned growth of fluorescent metal–organic frameworks onto functionalized surfaces

• Jinliang Zhuang,
• Jasmin Friedel and
• Andreas Terfort

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2012, 3, 570–578, doi:10.3762/bjnano.3.66

• [10][11], ultrasonic synthesis [12][13], microemulsions [14][15], or solvent-triggered precipitation [16][17]. Nanoscale MOFs with various morphologies, (e.g., nanospheres [16][18][19][20], nanocubes [21], nanorods [14][22], nanowheels [23], and hierarchical spheres [22]) have been synthesized [24

Reduced electron recombination of dye-sensitized solar cells based on TiO₂ spheres consisting of ultrathin nanosheets with [001] facet exposed

• Hongxia Wang,
• Meinan Liu,
• Cheng Yan and
• John Bell

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2012, 3, 378–387, doi:10.3762/bjnano.3.44

• transfer and back reaction has not been reported. A deep understanding of the role of the TiO2 [001] facet in these key processes of electron transport and recombination of DSCs is of great importance for both practical applications and basic research. In this work, anatase TiO2 spheres with a hierarchical

Impact of cell shape in hierarchically structured plant surfaces on the attachment of male Colorado potato beetles (Leptinotarsa decemlineata)

• Bettina Prüm,
• Robin Seidel,
• Holger Florian Bohn and
• Thomas Speck

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2012, 3, 57–64, doi:10.3762/bjnano.3.7

• Biomimetics, Schänzlestraße 1, 79104 Freiburg, Germany 10.3762/bjnano.3.7 Abstract Plant surfaces showing hierarchical structuring are frequently found in plant organs such as leaves, petals, fruits and stems. In our study we focus on the level of cell shape and on the level of superimposed microstructuring

• , leading to hierarchical surfaces if both levels are present. While it has been shown that epicuticular wax crystals and cuticular folds strongly reduce insect attachment, and that smooth papillate epidermal cells in petals improve the grip of pollinators, the impact of hierarchical surface structuring of

• optical properties of the plant surface, and can either improve or impede attachment of insects [1][2]. Structuring of epidermal surfaces such as leaves, petals and stems is manifold and occurs on different levels, leading to hierarchical organisation [3]. Both the shape and orientation of surface

Synthesis and catalytic applications of combined zeolitic/mesoporous materials

• Jarian Vernimmen,
• Vera Meynen and
• Pegie Cool

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2011, 2, 785–801, doi:10.3762/bjnano.2.87

• ” hierarchical mesoporous zeolite, meaning a mesoporous material with zeolitic walls, wherein the micro- and mesopores are interconnected in order to form a hierarchical structure. Such mesoporous zeolites are expected to be superior materials since they will be able to catalyze the typical reactions in which

• standard zeolites are used, but instead of being limited by the microporous nature, they will be able to convert larger molecules as well [44]. Moreover, the presence of a hierarchical pore system is also considered to be beneficial, since the presence of two interconnected pore systems with different

• with only minor) “true” hierarchical ordering cannot be beneficial for certain reactions. In fact, often a uniform pore size distribution and a high level of porosity are much more relevant than a perfectly ordered nanoporous material. The disordered mesoporous material, KIT-1 [53], is the perfect

Template-assisted formation of microsized nanocrystalline CeO₂ tubes and their catalytic performance in the carboxylation of methanol

• Jörg J. Schneider,
• Meike Naumann,
• Christian Schäfer,
• Armin Brandner,
• Heiko J. Hofmann and
• Peter Claus

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2011, 2, 776–784, doi:10.3762/bjnano.2.86

• and characterization of hierarchical microsized nanocrystalline ceria fibre mats Formation of ceria tubes without surfactant Ceria tubes were prepared by an exotemplating technique. After controlled ageing of a sol-precursor solution prepared from cerium ammonium nitrate (NH4)2Ce(NO3)6 in water and

Micro- and mesoporous solids: From science to application

• Jörg J. Schneider

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2011, 2, 774–775, doi:10.3762/bjnano.2.85

• achieve a basic understanding of what happens inside the porous framework of such a solid on the molecular, and nano- and mesocopic level, in a hierarchical order, during adsorption, desorption and chemical reactions. Alongside the development of experimental methods to unravel the details of the

Approaches to nanostructure control and functionalizations of polymer@silica hybrid nanograss generated by biomimetic silica mineralization on a self-assembled polyamine layer

• Jian-Jun Yuan and
• Ren-Hua Jin

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2011, 2, 760–773, doi:10.3762/bjnano.2.84

• after calcination [28]. Importantly, the attractive feature of this simple approach is that the nanosilicas can be created in a reliable and programmable way with a hierarchical nanostructure and complex morphology [29][30][31]. Very recently, we found that this crystalline LPEI is further capable of

• crystalline self-assembly on substrates, we also synthesized an ultrathin silica-nanowire-based surface, which demonstrated the feasible modulation of the hierarchical nanostructure and surface morphology [34]. In comparison, the modulation of the nanostructure and surface morphology of nanoribbon-based

Inorganic–organic hybrid materials through post-synthesis modification: Impact of the treatment with azides on the mesopore structure

• Miriam Keppeler,
• Jürgen Holzbock,
• Johanna Akbarzadeh,
• Herwig Peterlik and
• Nicola Hüsing

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2011, 2, 486–498, doi:10.3762/bjnano.2.52

• the application of diol/polyol-modified silanes [1][2][3][14][15][16][17][18]. Nakanishi and Lindén relied on polymerization-induced phase separation during sol–gel processing to form monolithic bodies with a hierarchical organisation of the pore structure at the meso- and macroscopic length scale [16

Towards a scalable and accurate quantum approach for describing vibrations of molecule–metal interfaces

• David M. Benoit,
• Bruno Madebene,
• Inga Ulusoy,
• Luis Mancera,
• Yohann Scribano and
• Sergey Chulkov

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2011, 2, 427–447, doi:10.3762/bjnano.2.48

• systems and, as such, are able to account for resonance phenomena, combination bands and vibrational overtones in a hierarchical and consistent manner. While temperature effects can be included using a statistical mechanics framework, these are usually neglected, and thus the approach is better suited to

• desirable to use an approach that has a physical underpinning and whose accuracy can be improved systematically. Rabitz et al. [8][9] showed that a many-body decomposition leads to a convenient hierarchical representation of the PES. In their approach, the PES is expanded in a series of one-dimensional

Organic–inorganic nanosystems

• Paul Ziemann

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2011, 2, 363–364, doi:10.3762/bjnano.2.41

• part funded by the German Science Foundation (DFG), many of them within the Collaborative Research Center (SFB) 569 dealing with the “Hierarchical Structure Formation and Function of Organic–Inorganic Nanosystems”. Thus, in addition to acknowledging the contributions of all authors and their teams, I

The effect of surface anisotropy in the slippery zone of Nepenthes alata pitchers on beetle attachment

• Elena V. Gorb and
• Stanislav N. Gorb

Beilstein J. Nanotechnol. 2011, 2, 302–310, doi:10.3762/bjnano.2.35

• joint project within the DFG priority program SPP 1420, whose members include the Department of Functional Morphology and Biomechanics at the University of Kiel and the Institute for Chemistry at the University of Osnabrück, the hierarchical structure of the slippery zone is currently being analysed at

• Materials Research: Functionality by Hierarchical Structuring of Materials’ (project GO 995 ⁄ 9-1) to SG.